Kate McGlinchey (Fels ’16), Fellow for Chicago’s Mayor Rahm Emanuel

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When Kate McGlinchey (Fels ’16) accepted a fellowship in Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s office last summer, the move amounted to a loan of top policy talent from Philadelphia to the Windy City.

“After reading up on the fellowship, I spoke with Fels alum Chris Goy (Fels '12) who had served as a mayoral fellow a few years ago,” McGlinchey said, explaining how she learned of the opportunity. “I decided to apply after that.”

The Chicago Mayoral Fellowship offered McGlinchey opportunities to learn about a host of different policy areas while working with graduate students from a diverse range of fields – everything from sustainable development to computer science.

“One of the best aspects of the Chicago program was the ability to work on projects for multiple city departments,” said McGlinchey. “It allowed me to explore different interests and issues. My favorite project was working on immigrant initiatives for the Chicago Office of New Americans.”

In terms of preparation for the fellowship, McGlinchey cites Fel’s Public Financial Management course as incredibly helpful.

“I took the course my second semester and it taught me how to read and understand city budgets,” she said. “This proved incredibly helpful when I helped research budget initiatives. The background knowledge from the Fels course meant I could jump right in without first struggling to understand all of the complex budget language.”

While McGlinchey enjoyed Chicago’s incredibly walkable downtown and superb museum, arts, and cultural scene, she’s glad to be back in Philly for her second year – and returning to her internship with the city relations firm S.R. Wojdak & Associates.